


Queen Of The Night

by Smart_heart



Series: Halloween Shenanigans [5]
Category: Hilda (Cartoon)
Genre: F/F, I made the librarian really overpowered here and I’m vibing with it, halloween countdown
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-31
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:21:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,798
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27302584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Smart_heart/pseuds/Smart_heart
Summary: After months with Johanna, the librarian still hasn’t mentioned a small detail about herself… that she is the most powerful witch in the whole town. With halloween upon them, this secrecy is threatened, and this isn’t even the biggest of Maven’s problems
Relationships: Johanna | Hilda's Mum/The Librarian (Hilda)
Series: Halloween Shenanigans [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1987705
Comments: 6
Kudos: 25





	Queen Of The Night

**Author's Note:**

> *throws black confetti on the air* IT’S HALLOWEEN, Y’ALL! Hope you enjoy this one last Halloween fic and that you enjoy the full moon tonight. Alternative title: the overpowered librarian fic literallly nobody asked for.
> 
> Spooky song recs: All Souls Night by Loreena McKennitt and Queen of the Freaks by AViVA

All Souls Night had never scared Maven. Even as her mother told her to beware of the night when the veil was thin, even as she brushed with things she couldn’t understand every year, she never, for a moment, had been stricken by terror. How could she? She was a witch. This was her night too.

But that year, for the first time, she was afraid. Because now, for the first time, she had people to protect.

Her relationship with Johanna would complete a whole year very soon, and she still hadn’t told her girlfriend she was a witch. It wasn’t because she didn’t trust her, but rather because in all honesty, she wasn’t sure how well the woman would take that. From what Maven knew about her, she would much rather be on the normal side of things, even though she did her best to support her daughter when their ideas diverged on the matter.

And _Hilda_ did know about her secret. Or at least, she’d never really put any effort into hiding it from her. Between the help she’d given her with her ghost situation, a long time before, and giving her sincere explanations when she asked about the objects in Maven’s house and the reasons behind weird actions, the girl was sure to have already figured it out. Still, she knew Hilda hadn’t said a word about it to her mother. Though at first the librarian had taken her for a very impulsive girl, she knew Hilda had way more tact then she had expected.

During all those months they’d been dating, Maven had felt like a traitor. She showed Johanna a face while she was with her, and became a completely different person as soon as her back was turned. And the more time passed, the less she believed that side of her would be well accepted, to the pointThough she couldn’t even say she was hiding a _side_. It would all have been easier if she was just a cunning woman, or a psychic, or any other sort of person who might come across as a little too weird, a little too knowing, but whose abilities were a small part of their life. But she was a _witch_ , and not just any witch at that. She was the heir of the oldest bloodline of witches in Trolberg, and thus the heir of ancient traditions as well. Spirits listened to her, the faeries respected her too much to play their tricks on her, the ground recognized her power and the trees talked to her. Even the few other witches in town looked up to her for guidance, including the ones that were older than her.

No, she wasn’t just hiding a side of herself. Ever since she had met Johanna, she’d been hiding all that she was. It had nothing to do with being ashamed of her heritage; it would make no sense to be embarrassed of the power that ran in her veins. But at the same time, she had begun feeling like what she was was… wrong. Because with each word that Johanna said about what she pictured in her future, the peace and security she longed for, Maven felt like there was no place for a witch and everything that came with them in her life. And how could anything that kept her away from Johanna be right?

That was the reason why she had kept that to herself for so long, why she had tried her best to tear herself in two so that she could be with that woman, even if that made her a watered down version of herself. However, at that moment, she was at the risk of having her secret spilled in the worst way possible.

It had all begun the night before. She’d been in the cemetery, talking to the ghosts like she did every year on Samhain’s eve. They had to be reminded of the rules, for when the veil between this world and the next got thinner they had more freedom then they usually did. The dead tended to be reckless, and when ghosts gathered with spirits that were too far down the veil to return on any other night, chaos could strike at any moment. This was the reason why every witch in her family had assigned themselves the job of reminding the ghosts of how to maintain a peaceful contact with the living realm on All Souls Night and to strike them down should they attempt to hurt anyone.

The ghosts had been perfectly respectful, as they were every year. Not only did they have an amicable relationship with Maven, fro where her life was a disgusting web of lies that she was too afraid to untangle, knowing that if the truth came out, she’d lose the woman she loved.

m years of seeing the woman visit their graveyard for a variety of reasons, which included talking to them, but also because they didn’t dare pick a fight with a witch of her caliber. All the while she’d been in the graveyard, everything had been fine, the ghosts already celebrating in anticipation for the next night. It was when she stepped out of Saint Guglow’s that trouble began.

Her phone started to vibrate in her pocket, and she picked the call up after seeing Johanna’s name on the screen. Mixed emotions crossed her heart, happiness at having her girlfriend call her but also fear, like she’d caught her doing something wrong even though Maven knew Johanna couldn’t see her through the phone. Her contact picture was enough to make Maven feel like she was being watched.

“Hey!” Johanna greeted cheerfully when she picked up. “How are you?”

Adjusting her scarf in an attempt to feel less stifled, Maven tried to sound natural. “I’m fine, what about you?”

“I’m doing perfectly! Hilda and I were invited to the Halloween party her school is throwing tomorrow night! I wanted to ask you if you’d come with us.”

Maven inhaled sharply and looked down at the sidewalk, forcing herself to continue walking. There was no way she could be with Johanna on All Soul’s Night. It was her responsibility to watch if anything went wary, to supervise magic on the day it was strongest, and she couldn’t forego these duties without there being catastrophic consequences, just like she couldn’t tell the truth to Johanna. The lie came easily to her lips after months of spewing untruths and omissions.

“Sorry, Anna, I can’t. My family decided to make a small gathering tomorrow and I have to go. You know it’s not often I see them.”

She did know so. Johanna had long realized that Maven barely spoke of uncles and cousins. She hadn’t been close to them ever since her parents had died. Though it was unusual to make a family gathering on Halloween, Johanna couldn’t be disappointed about the declining when she was so glad that Maven would spend some time with other people who cared about her.

“Oh, that’s nice! How about I pay you a visit in the morning, then? Just so we can see each other.’

“Oh, um.” This time Maven tumbled over her words, not having expected her to insist. She was too worried trying to find an answer to think about how cute it was that Johanna didn’t want to spend the day without seeing her. “Actually I promised my aunt I’d help her prepare everything. Food, and… decoration. Things of the like.”

Sitting on her couch, Johanna frowned. Maven didn’t cook. She’d spend her life eating take outs and frozen food if it depended on her. Either way, she found it better not to press her.

“I see.” Johanna uttered, making Maven feel a sharp sting of guilt at how crestfallen she sounded. “Well, happy Halloween, then. See you on Sunday.”

“Yeah. See you.”

"Good night.”

“Good night.”

Johanna hung up first and Maven sighed at her phone.

“Happy Halloween indeed.” She whispered to the emptiness of the street. Never in her life had she come close to being bitter about who she was, but for those seconds during which she looked at Johanna’s contact picture on her phone, taken on a day she’d taken Hilda and herself to a park she’d loved when younger, that was the emotion that swirled in her soul. 

She had to get rid of it, and quickly. Since she had left the library that afternoon, her feelings had been what she’d paid the most mind to. She needed to be in her calmest, most balanced state for the task ahead of her, otherwise she’d fail to accomplish the most important duty of the whole season: to make sure the Sarende beast would be locked for another year.

Of all the monsters that lurked about in the dark, none was as fearsome as the Sarende, or how it was called in most tales, the prince of darkness. Not that it looked or acted like a prince. Far from it, her books described it as a grotesque beast. Barely anyone knew about it in Trolberg, of course, a consequence of Maven and her bloodline having done their jobs properly during their lifetimes, but in some towns the tales of the creature were many, for each town had their own Sarende.

The monster was nothing more than the materialization of all the intrigue, bad blood, hurt, and overall bad feelings of its town. The bigger the town, the bigger the Sarende and luckily Trolberg’s was small enough that Maven was able to take care of it on her own. It lived in the spiritual realm, on the other side of the veil, and unless it was stopped the weakening of the barriers on Halloween would allow it to escape.

Maven didn’t know for sure what their one would do. It had never escaped before. But if the tales from other cities were right, it would wreck the town to the ground just by aggravating feuds or creating new ones between its inhabitants. It didn’t want the destruction of the town, of course. That would only kill it. But it wanted more hurt, more pain, more anger, because with each word people shouted at each other it got stronger.

Until midnight. That’s how long she had to get a grip over her emotions. If she went to mend the Sarende’s ward feeling guilty, bitter and miserable… she didn’t even want to think about what would happen.

The place in which this mending took place was deep inside the Huldrawoods. It was there where magic was the strongest in the whole town, being inhabited by all sorts of magical creatures. Spell work was ten times more powerful in there, but witches hardly chose it as their casting sites, for things could go wary with the slightest mistake. Everything was heightened in those woods, even emotions.

Not long into her walk to the exact place where the barrier between their world and the spot the Sarende inhabited in the spiritual world, Maven saw a campfire with green light. Brats. They should know better than to be out so close to Samhain.

“Hate to crash your party, girls.” Maven said sarcastically. All of the Marra’s eyes were drawn to her as she walked into their circle. It wasn’t often that they saw Trolberg’s most powerful witch, especially not in their camp. “But you need to go. Now. Truly, you could not have picked a worse time or place if you tried.”

Jade scoffed. The blondie had always been the only one with enough gal to stand to Maven, and still they all knew it was just an act. No magical creature really had the bravery to try and get on the witch’s bad side, none that knew what she was capable of, at least. And Maven rarely became a bother, anyway.

“Why is that so?” She asked with an attempt at disdain.

“Well, little kids like yourselves should be sleeping by now. Got a long night of trick or treating tomorrow.” Maven said while looking at her nails, just to get on their nerves. She’d never liked the Marra. They were the sort of girls too cruel to be reasoned with. She remembered an instance, when she’d been young, that one of them had tried to haunt her. As soon as it had become clear to her the cause of her unusual nightmares, she’d set out a magical trap for when she was next visited. The marra had fallen for it, and as she understood, she’d been expelled from the group for trying to haunt someone from Maven’s family. Even they knew better than to mess with that type of witch.

Jade snarled.

“ _We are not little kids._ ”

“Is that what you plan on telling the Sarende when it senses your fear magic and comes after you?” Maven said seriously this time. There were gasps from the other girls in the group, and Maven heard one of them whisper about the prince of darkness. “I know we don’t see eye to eye. But your presence in these woods will only make the beast stronger and harder to control. And if it gets its way, no nightmare you could possibly inflict upon people would be worse than their waking hours. Please go away, you’ll get your fun tomorrow like all creatures.”

The mention of the Sarende was enough to make Jade back down. As Marra, they knew all about it and recognized its power. Fear made them stronger, but it made the monster all but invincible.

“Let’s go, girls. Tonight’s dreams were lame, anyway.”

They were gone in a puff of green smoke, their fire extinguishing with their departure. Maven had to squint to see again, her eyes adjusting themselves to the complete darkness. With that problem solved, she returned to the path she’d been following.

Though the trees all looked alike, one thing marked the way she had to go. The initials “U” and “H” had been carved on some of the barks in the witch rune alphabet, guiding each generation of Underhills to where they should complete their duty.

The encounter with the Marra had distracted her some, but as she walked deeper into the forest her call with Johanna returned to the forefront of her mind. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to shake it away, telling herself that _she was not thinking about this. She had all but forgotten about it._

An old family lullaby that her mother would sing to her came to her mind, and she hummed it under her breath to distract herself. It had a slow rhythm and sounded as old as it was, like something you’d hear phantoms whispering in an abandoned castle.

_“A witch fears not what’s in the dark  
For a whole lot stronger is her heart,   
The monsters all run out of her sight  
No, they dare not anger the queen of the night.  
And the wolves don’t scare her  
Nor do the ghosts  
Her power is greater than any foe  
When the moon shows up, it does shine bright  
Bright like your magic, queen of the night.”_

_#_#_#_

There was a metal circle on the floor that marked the exact place the Sarende would try to break through, inscribed with runes that no one but a well trained witch would be able to read. Maven sat cross legged in front of it, waiting for midnight to strike so Samhain officially began. She didn’t have a clock, but she could feel it getting closer, the air getting heavy with magic. She’d know when it happened, though. It wouldn’t be discreet.

While time passed, Maven did her best to meditate. Her heart, however, wasn’t in it at all, and her mind kept going through the call, through all the pent up anguishes she had because of her lying and because of the certainty that she could never be herself if she wanted to keep Johanna, and the knowledge that she had to be in her best state of mind at that moment only made her more distressed.

She was a mess. But there had been nothing to do about it. Midnight came, and with it a ghastly breach on the veil where the Sarende took advantage of its weakness to try to break free. A normal person would not have been able to see it, but someone with strong sensibility would have noticed the battle of energy between the monster and the witch. As it tried to rip a cut in the veil wide enough for it to pass through, Maven focused all her power into mending any rifts it made and into strengthening the veil in that part.

It was a tiring job. She felt magic humming inside her veins, energy flowing from her fingertips in streams. The earth lent her its energy, the wind guided it to the right place. The tears made by the Sarende were never big enough for it to even cross, but Maven did see its paws, black and slimy at the same time that it looked like they were surrounded by dark clouds. It was a battle of resistance, and, like every year before, Maven won. She was exhausted, more than she’d ever been, and she had to drag herself back home, but she’d won.

Or so she’d thought.

The next day had begun like every Samhain did. She woke up early, before the sun, having slept only enough to make sure she wouldn’t faint when she was needed the most, and spent hours going back and forth through the places where the veil usually got thinner or where trouble was most likely to arise: faerie rings, antique shops, cemeteries, the places where other witches practiced their craft, and even the morgue. It hadn’t been especially eventful. An unseelie faerie attempted to bewitch a man, but she’d managed to stop him and that was that. No spirits seeking to possess anyone, no Samhain ritual gone wrong, no hidden vampire amongst the unknowing citizens of Trolberg.

Returning home to grab something to eat when the night was beginning to fall, already suspecting that the night wouldn’t bring more trouble than the day had, Maven finally allowed herself to think about Johanna. She wondered if she was having fun at the party, hoping she was.

She walked to the portrait of Johanna she kept in her kitchen windowsill. Her girlfriend had given it to her herself, a framed picture of their museum date, one of their first ones. But when she stood in front of the photograph, what she saw was not their smiling faces, but the cloud of darkness that surrounded the frame. Maven gasped, taking a step backwards. She’d never seen that particular cloud of magic before, but something in her, deep and ancient, recognized the foe.

“No…” With her heart beating desperately against her ribs, she realized that not only had it left its dark haze over the frame, it had also stolen the picture. The witch covered her mouth with her hands. Distracted as she’d been, foolishly counting on the next few hours being as tranquil as the past ones, it had escaped her notice how obvious the Sarende’s presence in her home was. There was a vicious slime on the keyhole, a lingering smell of something rotten, and the heaviness of dark magic in the air. The monster hadn’t even bothered to be discreet, but her selfishness had prevented her from seeing her failure, which was now stark clear. She’d let her guard down. She’d let her guard down and now the Sarende was out on Trolberg, out to attack Johanna.

That was how, for the first time in all her years, Maven found herself terrified of what would happen in All Souls Night.

Running as fast as her feet would allow her, the cold autumnal wind made her hair flow wildly and the path of one single tear that spilled out of her eye feel warm against her skin. That was no time for crying, it was time for action, for fixing her mistake before anybody got hurt. But she feared it was already too late for that. There was a couple arguing on the pavement to her left, and though they shouted the words came to Maven’s ears incomprehensible. There was a black magical mist surrounding them, so fine that she was certain only a witch would be able to see it. To her left, a child dressed as a movie character threw his still empty bucket at his friend’s head, making him fall to the ground. Maven flinched. All this suffering was happening because she hadn’t been able to control her own petty feelings.

Behind a fence, laughing mischievously at the quarreling children, there was a small goblin-like creature. Its body was made of the same slime that had been on her house’s keyhole, with the exception of it’s horns, spiky things that looked as sharp as a knife. Maven knew about those. That creature was a part of the Sarende’s army, which he built out of his own body to serve him. According to the tales, they weren’t as dangerous as the monster itself, but they were just as cruel and completely loyal.

The little demon noticed her looking at him, and shrieked. It knew it didn’t stand a chance against her alone, and began running away. Maven followed it, dodging the fighting people she saw on the streets. She’d been following the Sarande’s trail to get to it, after all, magic that strong always made leftovers that could be easily traced by the experienced witch. It would be much easier, however, to let the Sarende’s subordinate guide her to its master.

And she did know it would guide her to the Sarande. Clearly, it was what the Sarand itself wanted. It wasn’t known to pick his prey, only to unleash his power on whoever he could get his claws on. This time, however, it _had_ picked a target, and it had made it quite clear by stealing the picture. Maven hadn’t had to think for too long before realizing that the Sarende had sensed exactly what had been on her mind when she’d attempted to secure his imprisonment, maybe it had even fed off of it, gaining strength to escape from her ill enforced enclosure. It had seen in her worries the perfect opportunity to get her out of its way, knowing that she was the only one in that town strong enough to stop him. 

And now, she was running straight into its trap. It had given her no choice.

The demon led her to a park, where she noticed a large number of children and their parents were in a state of panic. In the middle of it all, stood the Sarande. As tall as the treetops, it had no defined form, looking more like a swirling mass of darkness than a creature. It didn’t notice her straightaway, busy picking people up in its slimy paws and comparing them to a piece of paper it held. Her picture.

What once had been a school’s Halloween party was now a wreck. The decorations had been torn, food was spilled on the ground and chairs and tables fell to the floor. Already, the people who had already been picked up by the monster began to fight with each other, as if there wasn’t a bigger threat in front of them at that exact moment. 

Maven stood still, looking at the enormity of the Sarende as it looked back and forth between a woman and the picture, and she nearly yelled when a hand grabbed her wrist and pulled her down to the ground.

“Don’t raise your voice, it might hear you!”

The voice was sweet, and she recognized it even if it was currently tainted with worry.

“Johanna!” Maven gasped her name in a breath of relief. Both she and Hilda were bundled together, behind a fallen table as if it was a shield. “You’re okay! Both of you are!”

“What are you doing here?” Clearly desperate, Johanna hissed. Fear was evident on her face, and even on Hilda’s.

“I realized what was happening and I had to come and see if you were alright.” It wasn’t a lie. It felt good not to have to lie.

“Well what _is_ happening?” Asked Hilda. Maven wondered if she’d tried to talk it out with the Sarende, like she did with most creatures, but judging by how she was still acting normal as opposed to bickering with everyone, it probably hadn’t been the case.

Another voice piped up, that of someone who she hadn’t yet realized was among them.

“That is the prince of darkness!” Said Alfur from Hilda’s shoulder. When Maven first met the elf, everyone was rather confused as to how she could see him, but luckily neither of them questioned it when she admitted her mother had had her sign elf paperwork when she was a child. “It’s the corporeal form of every negative emotion in a town, seeking to strengthen them to gain more power! I remember when my village’s beast broke free, it was hell! And it was a lot smaller, too! Awful things are known to happen when a town’s High Witch doesn’t lock it up properly.”

“Witch?!” Johanna shrieked, widening her eyes and making Maven wince. “There aren’t witches in Trolberg! We’d know if there were.”

“There are witches everywhere.” Insisted Alfur. Hilda sneaked a glance at Maven. It was written in the librarian’s eyes that she didn’t like where this was going, her hunched shoulders and furrowed brow making her look like a kitten that had been kicked. “And if you’ve never heard about the Sarende, there certainly is a very strong one here.”

One of the Sarende’s demons climbed the top of the table they were hiding behind, leaning over Johanna’s head. The woman gasped when she felt the creature near her hair, but Maven was quicker and before it could alert its master about Johanna’s whereabouts, she grabbed its slimy body and threw it forward. Scared, Johanna kicked it, and it didn’t stand up again immediately.

“Well, where is this witch?!” Johanna shouted, way higher that she should have. Afraid for her life and for that of her loved ones, though, she didn’t manage to control her voice. “Can’t they see we need them?”

“Where indeed.” Came a deep, rumbling voice from behind them. Both Hilda and Johanna screamed when they turned their heads and saw the Sarende itself standing near them, staring at them with its many unblinking eyes. Maven couldn’t remember ever having heard about the Sarende speaking. She hadn’t been prepared for how bone chilling his voice was.

Taking them all by surprise, the monster reached out and curled his snake-like arm around Johanna’s waist, and the woman screamed as she was lifted up from the ground.

“Mum!” Watching her mother being taken by the creature, Hilda was unable to fight off the group of demons that tackled her down to the earth.

Johanna tried to fight the beast off, ignoring the putrid smell that came from it as she pressed her hands against his arm in order to weaken its grip on her, all her focus on escaping to help her daughter. Until she saw the picture.

“Oh, it certainly is you.” The Sarende said, putting her side by side with the photograph. She frowned, her insides twisted by fear and her eyebrows drawn together in confusion. “Isn’t it, little Underhill? Isn’t this the one who worries you so?”

Her hands coming to stillness in surrender to the monster’s clutch, Johanna locked her gaze with Maven’s. She hated what she saw there. There were tears on her eyes, even if she didn’t allow them to spill, and wordlessly she begged for Johanna’s forgiveness. Johanna didn’t want to think about what it was that she was being asked to forgive.

“Suddenly you’re shy, Underhill? I’ve waited so very long to get back at one of your kin. They were all so stubbornly proud, until you. This little human made you slip, I’ve seen it all. Why don’t you tell her now, who it is that helped Hilda get her hands on a soul stealing enchantment? Why don’t you tell her what you’ve been doing all day long? _Why don’t you tell her who it is that failed to stop me_? Test your luck! Let’s see if she loves you all the same after that.”

Maven couldn’t speak. She could hardly breathe at all, let alone force words past her mouth. A cornered mouse in a maze, that’s how she felt as she stared into Johanna’s eyes, pools of deep brown that implored her to say this wasn’t what it looked like, implored for her help.

“You’re not even going to take the risk? How sad, I was hoping for some fun. In that case, there’s nothing you can do, is there? After all, you’re just another helpless little human.”

In the edge of her vision, Maven caught sight of the other party guests. Even those who weren’t busy fighting each other were occupied, fighting off demons of their own. Simultaneously, the Sarende tightened its grasp on Johanna’s waist, making it hard for her to inhale, and his minions raised their arms to hit Hilda.

“No!” She screamed. It stopped the demons from bringing their claws down to strike the girl, and the Sarende stopped tightening its grip. There was a cruel glint in its eyes, one that told her it was having fun. “It’s me. I am the witch.”

“What?!” The expression on Johanna’s face was unreadable, but it certainly wasn’t one of happiness. She seemed to have forgotten her discomfort with being held by the monster to stare at her girlfriend, feeling confused and betrayed. Johanna would be the first to admit she didn’t even really know what it meant to be a witch, but she did know this meant Maven had been keeping a big secret from her.

“I’m sorry, Anna.” Maven cried, pleadingly. “I really am. I’m sorry I kept this from you for so long, I’m sorry I couldn’t stop the Sarende and I’m sorry you had to find out like this.”

“Why on earth did you hide this?” Not caring if she was screaming, Johanna felt an ache in her chest that had nothing to do with the Sarende’s strong arm against her waist. How far did the extent of Maven’s lies go, she wondered, and could she have stopped all of this from happening? Her gaze went from Maven to Hilda, still being held down by the monster’s minions, and anger threatened to choke her. Could Maven have stopped her daughter from getting hurt?

A dark mist already began to rise from the two women. It floated in the air and towards the Sarende, joining his body to make him bigger, stronger. Maven knew their discussing would only benefit the monster, and that this was exactly what it wanted, but there was nothing else to be done now. The truth was out, and Maven had to try and do this properly despite the circumstances.

“Because I was afraid! I know you’re not used to magic, and I know you’re wary of it. I was afraid that if you knew what I am, you’d leave me.”

“You should have let that be my choice!” Johanna groused, but then she sighed. Maven looked properly ashamed, so at least she had that much. “Look, we can talk more about this later, but can you solve this mess?”

The witch perked up, blinking as she stared at Johanna.

“Later?” She uttered, afraid she’d misunderstood Johanna. “You’re willing to talk about this? To… give me a chance?”

The mist that had been coming from them thinned gradually until it ceased appearing, making the Sarende itself glare at the two women in confusion.

“Of course I am, Maven.” Still terrified about being held by this monster, Johanna would have liked to talk on any other moment except for that one, but her girlfriend had to know more about this fiend than she did, and her girlfriend didn’t look scared of the Sarende at all. The only thing that seemed to be scaring Maven was this conversation. “Why did you think I wouldn’t?”

The wind howled in the night, making the witch’s hair flow around her head. Some strands threatened to stick on the wet path of a tear she hadn’t realized she’d spilled, and she filled her lungs with cold air.

“I thought you’d hate me.”

She couldn’t have imagined how freeing those words would feel. Never, not even in her mind, had she admitted the fear that Johanna would not only reject her, but also be repulsed by her. A sensation of relief overtook her, like a barrier inside her had broken. She’d been holding that inside of herself for so long, now it felt like she’d rid herself of a bolster and energy could finally flow through her freely again.

“Oh, Maven. You shouldn’t have felt that way. I’m going to be honest with you, I’m angry right now. But it’s not about you being a witch, it’s about you having kept something so important from me for so long. I… I could never hate something that is a part of you.”

Maven looked up at her like she was the moon itself, and even through her anger, Johanna managed to give her an honest smile.

“If I survive this, Maven, I promise I’ll give us a chance to do this right.”

Maven’s lips began to quirk upwards, a smile that took over her face. There was something beautiful in it, but also something deeply terrifying. Not that it made Johanna scared; she instinctively knew there was nothing for _her_ to be afraid of.

“There’s no “if”, dear.”

“This was all very touching.” The Sarende hastened to say. It was trying to back away, resuming to tighten its hold on Johanna. On its eyes, Maven could see apprehension. Things weren’t going according to its plan, and it would have to act fast if it wanted to win that night. “But now it’s time to say goodbye.”

Johanna gasped, not really because she felt the Sarende pressing against her bones, but because she saw Hilda struggling against the demons, which seemed to be pulling her hair. They all stopped it when they heard a sound, however, strange and unexpected in the darkness of All Souls Night. Maven’s laugh.

It began in small chuckles, but soon had been transformed into a deep laughter that made Johanna question her sanity.

“I’d been told you were powerful.” The witch snickered. She put one foot on top of the edge of the table they’d been hiding behind. “But nobody told me you were stupid.”

Maven lifted her right hand, from which came thin streaks of purple lightning. They hit the demons that had been over Hilda, making them scream and drop dead. Their body became pure slime, and it was absorbed by the earth. All that was left of them were their horns, and Hilda sat up, completely unharmed.

The grin didn’t wash off of Maven’s face as she watched the most feared monster in the whole world back away. She took a deep breath, feeling like herself again. If there was ever a time to be confident about who she was, this was it, and after months she finally could again. Her magic hummed beneath her skin, and she allowed herself to feel it, the warmth of it traveling through her body.

Her magic lifted her up, until she was floating high enough to look at the Sarende straight in its many eyes. The monster had wanted her to tell Johanna what she was so badly, and now she’d show them all exactly who she was. For months, that part of her had been neglected, but not anymore. The witch was back, and she’d never felt more powerful.

“You fool.” She said, feeling her power come together around her, feeling the magic that connected her to the world and creatures around her. “Did you not see that Johanna not knowing was the only thing protecting you?”

In one last attempt to regain control, the Sarende squeezed Johanna, going for the kill. The witch was much faster, and before it could do anything a blast of magic cut through its arm, making it fall to the ground along with the woman. Instead of landing in the hard ground, though, she landed on a cushion, which Maven had summoned.

“You can’t beat me.” The Sarende hissed, gathering its powers for a fight, its arm growing back. It had easily cut through the witch’s magic the night before, but now things were different. She wasn’t at all vulnerable anymore.

“Can’t beat you?” When Maven spoke, everyone in the park gasped. It wasn’t her voice they heard, it was a sound that was carried by the wind, one that could be felt on the ground, one that was murmured by each leaf that fell. It sounded ancient and heavy, like it was coming from the earth itself. It only completed the picture when Maven’s eyes began to shine with white light. “You think you’re the prince of darkness, do you? _You’re speaking to the queen of the night_.”

The blow of magic that came from Maven was so strong and fast that the monster didn’t have the chance to defend itself before it was sent flying against a tree. All around the park, magical creatures appeared to fight off the Sarende’s demons. Faeries, goblins and ghosts, they all fought side by side at Maven’s command. Hilda joined them, doing what she could against the fiends, but Johanna could do nothing but stare up at her girlfriend, wide eyed.

Another spell from Maven was sent to the Sarende, and it howled, the noise ear-piercing. The monster got smaller as the spell hit him, and though it tried to fight her off with desperate, erratic shots of dark magic, the witch transferred them all into the earth, which absorbed all the negativity and hurt that were the core of the Sarende’s power. 

Moving one finger in the air in a circular motion, Maven opened a portal to the spiritual world. It was an easy task, considering how thin the veil was that night, and the Sarende was sucked into it. Since it was never meant to escape, the spiritual world itself drew it in, and the portal was closed with a wave of light. Without their master, the demons that still remained fell down, lifeless.

The wind had gotten stronger while Maven worked her magic; she hadn’t realized she’d done that. Ordering it to become a gentle breeze, she allowed her magic to be subdued, lowering herself down to the ground. As soon as her feet touched the earth, she was pulled into an embrace.

“You did it!” Johanna squealed, half relieved and half unbelieving. Maven clasped her arms around her, not only to give her the comfort she surely needed after a traumatizing experience, but also to steady herself. Not once in her life had she had the need to use so much magic and now she felt dizzy, her muscles shaking.

“Actually, you did more to defeat it than I did.” She whispered. Before Johanna could ask her what she meant, though, Hilda came running to them.

“Maven!” Screamed the girl with wide eyes. “That was awesome!”

The park was pure chaos, the witch realized as she looked around herself. Even though people had stopped fighting and there were no demons attacking anyone, the mess that had been caused by the Sarende remained. On top of that, the creatures she’d summoned to fight against its subordinates hadn’t left, which was causing the other partygoers even more distress. Maven imagined that having an army of magical creatures show up wasn’t really part of what they had planned for that night, but at least it meant none of them were coming to her to demand explanations.

She’d have to deal with those creatures, though. Send them all back to where they came from. Just the thought of it made her exhausted.

“Thanks, Hilda.” Maven sighed, extremely aware that Johanna had taken a step away from her as soon as she’d let her go. “It’s good to see you doing well. I’m sorry those little monsters tried to hurt you.”

Turning to look directly at Johanna, she tried to come back to their previous topic. “And I’m sorry that you went through all of that just because I kept a secret.”

Truth be told, Johanna did not understand how Maven keeping that secret from her could have been the cause of the whole mess, but Maven looked like she really did believe in what she was saying, so she figured there was more to that story than she knew. It was one more thing to add to the growing list of questions she needed to ask. 

“We need to talk about that, Maven. We really do.” Johanna said bluntly, and in return Maven looked down at her feet, as if she thought Johanna would take offence in her looking directly at her face.

“I know. And I promise to answer everything you want to ask me. Truthfully.”

Johanna felt like putting her fingers under Maven’s chin, making her look at her again, but she didn’t. There would hopefully be plenty of time for assuring and comforting her later, but for the time being she was just glad she had Maven’s promise of honesty. Aside from Hilda, she’d never loved anyone as much as she did her girlfriend, and it would be simply terrible for everything to end because of a lie; in a short amount of time, Maven had become such a big part of her life which she didn’t want to let go of. She hoped they could rebuild the trust in their relationship, with time and comprehension from both sides. And she hoped she came to love the queen of the night just as much as she loved the librarian. After all, she was dating _all_ of Maven, not just the parts that seemed more convenient to her.

There was no time for Johanna to answer anything before a woman who she did not know ran towards Maven. She was panting, the grey streaks in her dark, curly hair indicating that she wasn’t young enough to run so much anymore.

“Master Underhill.” The woman addressed Maven. After her mother had died, it had taken her a while to get used to being called ‘master’ by people older than her, but at that point she thought nothing of it. “I came as soon as I saw the prince’s demons! What can I do?”

Maven waved her hand in a gesture meant to tell the woman not to worry. Talking to the other witch, Maven looked completely in control. It was odd to Johanna to see her being talked to with such respect, even a bit of reverence, but instead of it making her uneasy it brought a sense of pride in her girlfriend and curiosity about what she’d done to earn such treatment. She was sure it had been no small thing.

“It’s taken care of, Ruth. Mostly at least.”

Ruth took in the park, grimacing at the state it was in but relieved to find that the greatest danger had passed.

“I do need you to take on Halloween duty, though. Get the others, I need you on patrol for the rest of the night.”

“You want _us_ to take Halloween duty?” Ruth questioned with surprise. She knew how to do that, of course, and with the rest of the witches of Trolberg they should be able to keep the town in order for a few more hours. It just took her unprepared, for Maven had never asked anyone else to take that job before, choosing to keep the magical creatures in check herself.

“I do. It’s just until midnight, and aside from putting _them_ back where they came from.” Maven gestured to the park, particularly to a spot where a faerie seemed to be trying to trick a child into signing a deal with it. “You shouldn’t have any problems. The Sarende won’t return, not tonight.”

“I’ll call the rest of us, then. Would you like someone to help you with something else?” She asked, imagining that the only reason why their High Witch could be letting go of her duties on All Souls Night was to do something even grander.

Looking at Johanna again, Maven tried not to feel afraid. After defeating one of the most powerful creatures she’d ever heard of, it would be ridiculous for a conversation to feel daunting.

“No, thank you, Ruth. What I need to do now no one can do for me.”

After offering Maven a small bow, the other witch walked away to complete the tasks she’d been given.

“Do you want to go to my house? Hilda can come too, but she won’t be unsafe here.”

“Actually, i’d rather stay here.” The girl piped in, wanting to see more witches as work as well as remain with her friends, who she’d gotten separated from when the Sarende arrived and the trouble began, and also knowing that her mother and Maven should be alone for this conversation. Goodness knew it was long overdue.

“Alright, just don’t stay here for too long. Be back home by ten, okay?”

Hilda nodded eagerly and ran to the other side of the park to try and find her friends, hoping they hadn’t gotten hurt in that mess. When she was out of earshot, Maven and Johanna stared at each other for a beat, the former trying to hide how she didn’t really know what came next. In her head, she’d imagined herself having this conversation many times before, but envisioning something was always very different than actually doing it.

“Your place, then?” Johanna asked when she said nothing. Feeling a little foolish, she nodded, and they walked side by side back to Maven’s house.

There was no way to know how well that would end, of course. But she had to trust Johanna. If she’d done so from the beginning, maybe none of that would have happened. And no matter what, the chance to explain herself was already more than she could have hoped for.

She was nervous, yes, but that same time the day before she’d been miserable, so it was already an improvement. Looking at things from that perspective, Maven smiled.

Maybe that still was her night after all.

**Author's Note:**

> \+ happy Beltane for my fellow Southern Hemispherians!
> 
> Hope you enjoyed this, it was definitely my favorite fic in my Halloween countdown!
> 
> (Also I’m not going to write more on this verse but you know they end up together)


End file.
